Valve Nomenclature

1. Body: The valve body houses the internal valve parts and provides the passage for
fluid flow. The valve-body ends are designed to connect the valve to the piping or
equipment nozzle by different types of end connections, such as butt or socket-
welded, threaded, flanged or bolted
2. Seat: A valve may have one or more seats. In the case of a globe or a swing-check
valve, there is usually one seat. In the case of a gate valve, there are two seats; one
on the upstream side and the other on the downstream side
3. Disc: The disc is the part which allows, throttles, or stops flow, depending on its
position. In the case of a plug or a ball valve, the disc is called plug or a ball. A disc
is seated against the stationary valve seat or seats when the valve is in the closed
position.
4. Stem: The valve stem imparts the required motion to the disc, plug, or the ball for
opening or closing the valve. It is connected to the valve hand wheel, actuator, or
the lever at one end and the valve disc on the other.
Rising Stem with Inside Screw: The threaded part of the stem is inside the valve
body, and the stem packing is along the smooth part that is exposed to the
atmosphere outside. When rotated, the stem and the hand wheel rise together to
 open the valve. This design is commonly used in the smaller-sized low-to-
moderate pressure gate, globe, and angle valves
Non rising Stem with Inside Screw: The threaded part of the stem is inside the
valve and does not rise. The valve disc travels along the stem like a nut when the
stem is rotated. The valve disc travels along the stem like a nut when the stem is
rotated.
Sliding Stem: This stem does not rotate or turn. It slides in and out of the valve to
close or open the valve. This design is used in hand-lever–operated quick opening
valves.
Rotary Stem: This is a commonly used design in ball, plug, and butterfly valves. A
quarter-turn motion of the stem opens or closes the valve.
Stem Packing: Stem packing performs one or both of the following two functions
depending on the application:
● Prevent leakage of flow medium to the environment
● Prevent outside air from entering the valve in vacuum applications
5. Bonnet Nut: Bolting includes bolts, nuts, and washers. The bolting to be used must
be made from materials acceptable for the application in accordance with the
applicable code, standard, specification, or the governing regulation.
6. Bonnet Bolt : same with bonnet nuts
7. Back Seat : Back seat is comprised of a shoulder on the stem and a mating surface
on the underside of the bonnet
8. Bonnet: The bonnet or cover is fastened to the valve body to complete the
pressure-retaining shell. In case of gate, globe, stop check, and diaphragm valves,
it contains an opening for the valve stem to pass through. The bolted bonnet design
is commonly used with cast or ductile iron, cast or forged steel, and alloy valves,
which are rated NPS 2¹⁄₂ (DN 65) and larger, and Class 600 and below. Pressure
seal–bonnet design are usually manufactured in Class 600 and higher rating
classifications and are considered superior in regard to the leaktightness.
9. Gland: Inevitably some liquid leaks outside from the stem and this is called gland
leakage. To reduce this leakage a gland packing such as a compressible material
like asbestos rope or a Teflon packs is used to control the leakage to minimum.
 10. Hand wheel: The torque required to operate hand wheels after the initial
"breaking" can vary due to the size, design, and condition of the valve.
11. Yoke: Yoke is also called yoke arms. It connects the valve body or bonnet with the
actuating mechanism. For power-actuated valves, the yoke arms are of a heavier
construction to provide adequate support to the actuator
12. Trim: refers to all internal parts of a valve which are in flowing contact with
controlled fluid (also referred as wetted parts. It includes the valve plug, stem,
seat ring dll)

Types of Valve
1. Isolating
An isolation valve is a valve in a fluid handling system that stops the flow of process
media to a given location, usually for maintenance or safety purposes. Principal block
valve types include gate, globe (although used mostly to regulate flow), ball, butterfly,
plug valves.
2. Regulating
This is achieved by varying the valve’s open position to impart the required pressure
drop to regulate the volume of flow. Regulating valves also used for adjusting or
monitoring flow volumes and flow directions. They are the ideal solutions for
precision control of flow rate or pressure. Example of regulating valve are globe,
needle, butterfly, ball, plug valves
3. Non Return
A non-return valve allows a medium to flow in only one direction. A non-return valve
is fitted to ensure that a medium flows through a pipe in the right direction, where
pressure conditions may otherwise cause reversed flow. The flow through the non-
return valve causes a relatively large pressure drop, which has to be taken into
account when designing the system
Gate Valve
Gate valves are primarily designed to start or stop flow, and when a straight-line flow
of fluid and minimum flow restriction are needed. In service, these valves generally are
either fully open or fully closed. Gate valves are often used when a straight-line flow of fluid
and minimum restriction is desired. In low-pressure and low-temperature systems such as
fire protection systems’ water piping or water distribution pipelines, flanged gate valves are
commonly used. Socket or butt-welding end-gate valves in air, fuel gas, feed water,
steam, lube oil, and other systems are typical applications.

There are three ways to classify the gate valve.

a. Types of Disk
1. Solid taper wedge

A valve with solid wedge may be installed in any position, and it is suitable for
almost all fluids. Solid wedge is subjected to thermal locking if used in high-
temperature service

2. Flexible wedge

Thermal expansion of steam line sometime causes distortion of valve bodies

which may lead to thermal blinding. The disadvantage of flexible gates is that line
 fluid tends to collect in the disk. These may result in corrosion and ultimately
weaken the disk.

3. Split wedge or Parallel disks Valve

Split wedge Disk consists of two solid pieces and holds together with the help
of special mechanism. The split disk can be in a wedge shape or a parallel disk
type. Freedom of movement of the disk prevents thermal binding even though
the valve may have been closed when a line is cold.

b. Types of Body Bonnet Joint

1. Screwed Bonnet
 This is the simplest design available and it is used for inexpensive valves.

2. Bolted Bonnet
This is the most popular design and used in a large number of gate valves. This
requires a gasket to seal the joint between the body and bonnet.

3. Welded Bonnet
This is a popular design where disassembly is not required. They are lighter in
weight than their bolted-bonnet counterparts.

4. Pressure-Seal Bonnet
This type is used extensively for high-pressure high-temperature applications.
The higher the body cavity pressure, the greater the force on the gasket in a
pressure -seal valve.
c. Types of Stem movement
1. Rising Stem or OS & Y Type (Outside Stem and Screw Type)

That means that when the handle is turned it directly raises and lowers the
gate of the valve by interacting directly with the stem of the valve. Generally
used on fire sprinkler system. Because a fire sprinkler main is dedicated for
fire protection and not for any domestic use, you cannot test in the usual
fashion if the water is on or not. One quick look at an OS&Y valve with the stem
raised out of the body of the valve and you will know that the water is on. API
600 also stipulates that the valve be of the Outside Screw and Yoke (OS&Y)
type for the actuating stem works to minimize corrosion damage of this
mechanism by locating the screw threads external to the valve.
 2. Non Rising Stem Type

There is no upward movement of the stem in a non-rising stem type. The valve
disk is threaded internally. The disc travels along the stem like a nut when the
stem is rotated. You can see the image. In this type of valve, stem threads are
exposed to the flow medium.

Advantages:
a. Good shutoff features
b. Gate valves are bidirectional and therefore they can be used in two directions
c. Pressure loss through the valve is minimal

Disadvantages:

a. They can’t be quickly opened or closed

b. Gate valves are not suitable for regulate or throttle flow
c. They are sensitive to vibration in the open state

Ball Valve
A Ball valve is a quarter-turn rotational motion valve that uses a ball-shaped disk to
stop or start flow. If the valve is opened, the ball rotates to a point where the hole through
the ball is in line with the valve body inlet and outlet.

Ball valves are basically available in three versions: full port, ventury port and
reduced port. The full-port valve has an internal diameter equal to the inner diameter of the
pipe. Venturi and reduced-port versions generally are one pipe size smaller than the line size.
There is 3 type of ball valve:

a. Split Body Ball Valve

The split body design consists of a two-part body, a cover, ball, seat rings, stem, and
other internals. The two-part body is held together by a flange connection. One body
part is smaller than the other. The ball is inserted in the larger body part, and the
smaller body part is assembled by a bolted connection. The split-body ball valves are
manufactured in sizes ranging from NPS ¹⁄₂ (DN 15) through NPS 36 (DN 900

b. Top Entry Ball Valve

Top-entry ball valves allow access to valve internals for assembly, disassembly,
repair, or maintenance by removal of the valve bonnet-cover. The valve is not
required to be removed from the pipeline.
c. End Entry Ball Valve
End-entry ball valves have a single-piece body. The ball is inserted from one end and
is retained by an insert. These valves have flange- or screwed-end connections. This
design is commonly used for inexpensive small valves. They are also available in
larger sizes up to NPS 6 (DN 150).

d. Three piece body Ball Valve

The middle part of the valve is the major part that holds all valve internals, and the
stem passes through a hole in the top. Two end caps are held together with the middle
body by bolts or studs and nuts. This design is available in sizes ranging from NPS ¹⁄₂
(DN 15) through NPS 36 (DN 900). Three piece ball valves also allow for elastomers
to be changed to accommodate different process conditions, temperatures, pressures
and flows.

e. Double Trunnion Ball Valve

In this ball-valve design, the ball is provided with two integral short-shaft extensions
called the top and the bottom trunnion. These trunnion are fitted in bearings and
 rotate freely when the shaft installed in the top trunnion is turned to open or close
the valve. A shaft installed in the top slot is turned to open or close the valve.
f. Lubricated and Non Lubricated Ball Valve
Like other valves, the stem sealing is usually accomplished by bolted packing glands
and O-ring seals. Some valve designs are available with a lubricant-seal system
similar to the one used in plug valves.
1. Full port ball valve
Has an oversized ball so that the hole in the ball is the same size as the pipeline
resulting in lower friction loss. Flow is unrestricted, but the valve is larger

2. A standard port ball valve

Usually less expensive, but has a smaller ball and a correspondingly smaller port.
Flow through this valve is one pipe size smaller than the valve's pipe size resulting
in slightly restricted flow.

3. V port ball valve

A V-Port Ball Valve has either a ‘v’ shaped ball or a ‘v’ shaped seat, which allows
the orifice to be opened and closed in a more controlled manner with a closer to
linear flow characteristic. When the valve is in the closed position and opening is
commenced the small end of the 'v' is opened first allowing stable flow control
during this stage.
 4. A trunnion ball valve
Has a mechanical means of anchoring the ball at the top and the bottom, this
design is usually applied on larger and higher pressure valves (say 4 inch and
above 600 psi and above). Trunnion is available for all sizes and for all pressure
classes.
5. Floating Ball Valve
Generally speaking for floating ball design, the higher the size required, the lower
the pressure class it is available for the reasons described earlier in this post. For
example the largest size available is 10″ @ ANSI #150; the largest size available
for is 1″ @ ANSI #2500.

There are two types of seat in a ball valves, soft seated and metal seated. Soft seated
ball valves use a thermoplastic material such as PTFE, NBR etc. Metal seated ball valves use
metal as seat material such as 316 SS, monel, etc. In general application the soft seated
ball valves is suitable for a clean fluid and not recommended for a dirty fluid. This is
reasonable since some particulate may damage the soft seat material and causing a
leakage. In dirty fluid application, the metal seated ball valve is the best choice. In term of
the required torque to operate the ball valves, the soft seated ball valve will have a lower
torque rather than metal seated ball valves. In general practice, a metal seated ball valve is
only used in the severe service condition such as high temperature, high erosion or
abrasion, slurry, etc. In general application of oil and gas, the soft seated ball valve is used.

Advantages of Ball Valve

The following are the advantages of ball valves:

1. Provides bubble-tight service.

2. Quick to open and close.
3. Smaller in size than a gate valve.
4. Lighter in weight than a gate valve.
5. Multiport design offers versatility not available with gate or globe valves. It reduces
the number of valves required.
6. Several designs of ball valves offer flexibility of selection.
 7. Can be used in clean and slurry applications.
8. High-quality ball valves provide reliable service in high-pressure and high-
temperature applications.
9. Force required to actuate the valve is smaller than that required for a gate or a globe
valve.

Disadvantages of Ball Valve

1. They are not suitable for sustained throttling applications.

2. In slurry or other applications, the suspended particles can settle and become trapped
in body cavities causing wear, leakage, or valve failure.

Butterfly Valve
A Butterfly valve is a quarter-turn rotational motion valve that is used to stop,
regulate, and start flow. Butterfly valves are produced in sizes ranging from NPS 1¹⁄₂ (DN
40) to over NPS 200 (DN 5000). The butterfly valves have a low-pressure drop and high-
pressure recovery factor. A butterfly valve should not be located just downstream of a source
of flow turbulence, such as pump-discharge nozzle, elbow, control valve, or a tee-branch. To
minimize the effects of flow turbulence on the valve. They are suitable for low-pressure drop
applications. There is type of butterfly valve:

a. Low Pressure or Concentric Butterfly Valves.

In low pressure and low temperature designs of a butterfly valves, the disc and shaft
axes are concentric. The application temperature is limited by the temperature
capability of the resilient material. These valves are generally produced in Classes
150 and 300.
b. High-Performance or Eccentric Butterfly Valves.
The disc in high performance butterfly valves is offset from the center of the valve,
and the shaft is also offset from the center of the disc. The offsets provided allow the
disc to move eccentrically uninterrupted away from or toward the valve seat.

The following are some typical applications of Butterfly valves:

 Cooling water, air, gases, fire protection etc.

  Slurry and similar services
 Vacuum service
 High-pressure and high-temperature water and steam services

Advantages of Butterfly valves

The following summarizes the advantages of butterfly valves:

1. The compact design requires considerably less space, compared to gate, globe, or
other valves.
2. Light in weight.
3. Quick acting; as a quarter-turn valve, it requires less time to open or close.
4. It is available in large sizes, ranging from NPS 1¹⁄₂ (DN 40) to over NPS 200 (DN
5000).
5. They have low-pressure drop and high-pressure recovery.
6. Provide bubble-tight service.

Disadvantages of a Butterfly Valve

1. Throttling service is limited to low differential pressure.

2. Throttling is restricted to a 30- to 80-degree disc opening. Location of valve, pipe
routing, free, and closed discharge are to be considered while using a butterfly valve
in a throttling application.
3. Cavitation and choked flow are two potential concerns.
4. The disc movement is unguided and affected by flow turbulence.

Globe Valve
 A Globe valves is a linear motion valve and are primarily designed to stop, start and
regulate flow. The disk of a Globe valve can be totally removed from the flow path or it can
completely close the flow path. Globe valves are mainly used for corrosive or high viscous
fluids which solidify at room temperature. This is because straight valves are designed so
that the outlet pipe is in line with the inlet pipe and the fluid has a good chance of staying
there in the case of horizontal piping.

Type of Globe Valve:

1. Tee Pattern

Globe valves have the lowest coefficient of flow and higher pressure drop. They are used
in severe throttling services, such as in bypass lines around a control valve. Tee-pattern
globe valves may also be used in applications where pressure drop is not a concern and
throttling is required.

2. Wye Pattern
Globe valves, among globe valves, offer the least resistance to flow. They can be cracked
open for long periods without severe erosion. They are extensively used for throttling
during seasonal or startup operations.

3. Angle Pattern

Globe valves turns the flow direction by 90 degrees without the use of an elbow and one
extra weld. They have a slightly lower coefficient of flow than wye-pattern globe valves.
They are used in applications that have periods of pulsating flow because of their
capability to handle the slugging effect of this type of flow.

Advantages of a Globe Valve

The following summarizes the advantages of globe valves:

 1. Good shutoff capability
2. Moderate to good throttling capability
3. Shorter stroke (compared to a gate valve)
4. Available in tee, wye, and angle patterns, each offering unique capabilities
5. Easy to machine or resurface the seats
6. With disc not attached to the stem, valve can be used as a stop-check valve.

Disadvantages of a Globe Valve

The following are some shortcomings inherent in globe valves:

1. Higher pressure drop (compared to a gate valve)

2. Requires greater force or a larger actuator to seat the valve (with pressure under
the seat)
3. Throttling flow under the seat and shutoff flow over the seat

Typical Applications of Globe Valves

The following are some of the typical applications of globe valves:

1. Cooling water systems where flow needs to be regulated

2. Fuel oil system where flow is regulated and leaktightness is of importance.
3. High-point vents and low-point drains when leaktightness and safety are major
considerations.
4. Feed water, chemical feed, condenser air extraction, and extraction drain systems.
5. Boiler vents and drains, main steam vents and drains, and heater drains.
6. Turbine seals and drains.
7. Turbine lube oil system and others.

Plug Valve
A Plug Valve is a quarter-turn rotational motion Valve that use a tapered or cylindrical
plug to stop or start flow. In the open position, the plug-passage is in one line with the inlet
and outlet ports of the Valve body. They are used for steam, water, oil, gas, and chemical
liquid service. Plug valves are not generally designed for the regulation of flow. They are
available for pressure service from vacuum to 10000 psi (69000 kPa) and temperatures from
50 to 1500 F (46 to 816 C). Plugs are usually tapered downward, while in some cases they
are tapered upward. There is two type of Plug Valve:

a. Lubricated Plug Valves

Lubricated plug valves are normally manufactured in sizes ranging from NPS ¹⁄₂
through 36 (DN 15 through 900). They can be used in applications with pressures
over 2500 psi (17250 kPa). They have been used in services involving air, gases,
acids, alkalis, water, steam, oils, and fuels. Lubricated plug valves are less subject
to seizing or wear and may exhibit somewhat greater resistance to corrosion in
some service environments.

b. Non Lubricated Plug Valves.

Non lubricated plug valves contain an elastomeric body liner or a sleeve, which is
installed in the body cavity. The tapered and polished plug acts like a wedge and
presses the sleeve against the body. Non lubricating plug valves are used where
maintenance must be kept to a minimum.
Advantages:

The following summarizes the advantages of plug valves:

1. Simple design with few parts.

2. Quick to open or close.
3. Can be serviced in place.
4. Offers minimal resistance to flow.
5. Provides reliable leak tight service. Seal can be maintained by injection of sealant or
by replacement of sleeve, in addition to utilizing the wedging action of a tapered plug.
6. Multiple port design helps reduce number of valves needed and permits change in
flow direction.

Disadvantages:

1. Requires greater force to actuate, due to high friction.

2. NPS 4 (DN 100) and larger valves require use of actuators.
3. Reduced port, due to tapered plug.
4. Typically, plug valves may cost more than ball valves.

Typical Applications of Plug Valve:

1. Air, gaseous, and vapor services.

2. Natural gas piping systems
3. Coal slurries, mineral ores, mud, and sewage applications
4. Oil piping systems
5. Vacuum to high-pressure applications

Check Valve
Check valves are designed to pass flow in one direction with minimum resistance and
to prevent reverse or backflow with minimal leakage. The principal types of check valves
used are the tee-pattern lift check, the swing check, the tilting-disc check, the wye-pattern
lift check, and the ball check
1. Swing Check Valve

The disc in a swing type Check valve is unguided as it fully opens or closes. There
are many disk and seat designs available, in order to meet the requirements of
different applications. The valve allows full, unobstructed flow and automatically
closes as pressure decreases. Swing check valves in general do not provide protection
from water hammer. The disc in a swing check valve must travel a relatively large
distance in going from the fully open to the fully closed position

2. Lift Check Valve

Lift check valves are particularly adapted for high-pressure service where velocity of
flow is high. The walls of the piston and dash pot are of approximately equal
thickness. Large steam jackets are located outside of the dash pot and inside the
piston to eliminate sticking because of differential expansion.

3. Tilting Disc Check Valve

The tilting-disc check valve is designed to overcome some of the weaknesses inherent
in conventional swing check valves. A combination of design features enables the
valve to open fully and remain steady at lower flow velocities and to close quickly
upon cessation of forward flow.

4. Stop Check Valve

A stop check valve can either be used as a unidirectional check valve or as an

isolation (stop) valve like a gate or globe valve. During normal operation of a system,
these valves are used as a regular check valve; however, when needed, these valves
can be closed with the help of a screw-down stem which is not fastened to the valve
disc. The stem, when fully screwed down, holds the free-floating disc against the valve
seat, just as in a gate or a globe valve.

5. Ball Check Valve

Unlike other valves, ball check valves use a spherical ball inside their bodies to
help control the flow direction in pipes and systems. This ball rotates freely when
fluid passes through the system, which causes a wiping motion and even wear
 between the ball and seat. According to Valve Magazine, this unique action makes ball
check valves ideal for systems working with viscous materials.

Application Consideration

The force of gravity plays an important role in the functioning of a check valve and,
therefore, the location and orientation of the check valve must always be given
consideration. Lift and ball check valves must always be placed so that the direction of lift is
vertical. The valve should be sized such that the fluid velocity under normal conditions is
sufficient to keep the disc fully open and pressed against the stop. This minimizes disc
fluttering, which is the primary cause of valve failure. Also, a check valve should not be
located immediately downstream of a source of turbulence, such as a pump, elbow, control
valve, or a tee-branch connection. It is recommended that manufacturer’s recommendations
be followed to provide the required straight run of pipe upstream of the check valve. Some
manufacturers recommend 8-to-10 pipe-diameter length of straight run of pipe upstream of
the valve.

Advantages of Check Valves

They are self-actuated and require no external means to actuate the valve either to
open or close. They are fast acting.

Disadvantages of Check Valves

The following are some of the disadvantages that are attributed to check valves:
1. Since all moving parts are enclosed, it is difficult to determine whether the valve is
open or closed. Furthermore, the condition of internal parts cannot be assessed.
2. Each type of check valve has limitations on its installation configurations.
3. Valve disc can stick in open position.
Actuators
a. Manual
1. Lever

2. Hand wheel
Manual-only hand wheel actuators are intended for use with rotary-shaft valves.
Torque is transmitted from the hand wheel through the hand wheel input shaft to a
worm and drive sleeve gear (sector) with splined bore.
3. Gearbox Hand wheel

4. Chain
Linear Chain Actuators are mechanical devices consisting of sprockets and
sections of chain which are used for providing linear motion via the free ends of the
specially designed chains. Linear chain actuators are used primarily in motion control
applications for providing a straight line push or pull motion.
 5. Extended (Linear Actuator)

6. Spindle
The spindle actuator is a mechanical actuator adapted to small load capacities and
low cycles (11,000 cycles lifetime). It is best suited for lifting or pulling a load in
environments with no space-constraints.

b. Automated
1. Electric Motor
An electric motor provides the actuating energy to place the valve in the desired
position.

2. Pneumatic
Pneumatic actuators utilize the motive force provided by a compressed gas such
as air, nitrogen, or other inert gas. There are many different types of pneumatic
actuators. These include linear, rotary, and linear-to-rotary. Linear-type actuators are
used with valves having translating stems. These actuators are capable of providing
either fail-open or fail-close failure mode upon loss of air. Piston-type air actuators
are furnished with springs to open or close the valve upon air failure.